A PROPERTY firm has been accused of backing out of responsibility for Newburn’s flood-ravaged homes.

A row has broken out over who should pay to repair properties damaged by flooding.

Dunelm Homes, which built the Mill Vale Estate in Newburn, has accused Northumberland Estates of pulling out of a legal agreement to take responsibility.

But the property firm, owned by the Duke of Northumberland, has strongly denied the allegation, saying it has already spent £3.4m and is doing everything it can to sort out the problems so residents can return home.

Flooding struck the Mill Vale Estate four times between May and September, including the final culvert collapse on September 25 which left one Spencer Court block teetering on the edge of a hole in the ground.

In the days that followed, many families criticised Dunelm Homes, who built the houses less than a decade ago, for failing to take charge of the situation.

At the time the company said the repairs were not its responsibility or within its control.

But on October 1, the company made goodwill payments to affected householders and organised work which has now resulted in numbers 14 to 21 in Spencer Court demolished.

Now, Dunelm Homes has claimed it expected Northumberland Estates to do the work, but that it backed out on an earlier deal. Dunelm Homes said on June 29, Northumberland Estates told Newcastle City Council and residents it would take responsibility for managing the situation while it repaired the damage to its culvert.

Consequently, Dunelm Homes claim, Northumberland Estates asked the housebuilder if it could enter into a Formal Licence Agreement to allow contractors to enter the land and carry out pumping, flood defence and remedial works “with agreement to indemnify and insure Dunelm Homes against any loss”.

When asked to clarify, Dunelm Homes refused to comment, but a spokesman for Northumberland Estates rebuked any suggestion of wrongdoing.

“Northumberland Estates strongly denies the statement,” he said.

“The fact remains that Northumberland Estates has worked tirelessly since the original collapse to deliver a robust engineering solution as quickly as possible and, to date, we have spent over £3.4m on this.

“We anticipate the culvert on our land will be partially cleared and in a position to take some water by the end of this week.

“We expect our major repair works to be complete by the end of December.”